1,513 cases of Covid sub-variant JN.1 recorded in India: INSACOG

New Delhi: A total of 1,513 cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been reported so far in the country, with Maharashtra and Karnataka reporting the highest number of cases of the variant, according to INSACOG on Sunday.

Data compiled by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) showed that Maharashtra has recorded the highest number of JN.1 cases at 382, followed by Karnataka at 249.

Andhra Pradesh reported 189 JN.1 cases, while Kerala reported 156 cases of the variant and Gujarat reported 126 such cases.

West Bengal reported 96 JN.1 cases, Goa reported 90 and Tamil Nadu reported 89 cases.

According to data obtained by PTI, Rajasthan has recorded 38 JN.1 cases, Telangana 32, Chhattisgarh 25, Delhi 21, Uttar Pradesh nine, Haryana five, Odisha three each and Uttarakhand, Manipur and Nagaland each One case each has been registered.

Amid the rise in the number of Covid cases in the country and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant, the Center has asked the states and union territories to maintain constant surveillance.

States have been urged to ensure effective compliance with the detailed operational guidelines for the revised surveillance strategy for COVID-19 shared with them by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

States have also been asked to regularly monitor and report district-wise cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) from all health facilities for early detection of rising trend of Covid cases.

The World Health Organization has classified JN.1 as a separate “variant of interest” due to its rapidly increasing spread, but said it poses a “low” global public health risk.

The world body said the JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a variant of interest (VOI) as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineage, the original lineage which was classified as a VOI. Has been done